The year 2003 started with a bang for me. My face practically bled from all the paper cuts and scratches I got from the deck hitting me in the face. I had one of those runs we all dream about. Every hand I picked up turned to gold. When I sat down, I started winning – I mean, every session. Big wired pairs came with much greater frequency than statistics would have predicted – and they held up. Flushes were made as if the poker gods dictated they be. Getting off to a good start in poker is always a good thing, as it affects both oneself and one's opponents psychologically. During every session, I felt like a winner and looked like a winner, and steamrolled over the table as if I were entitled to the chips. A good start to a session empowers you with a sense of well-being and confidence, which enhances your performance. And oftentimes the results carry over psychologically to the next session. String a bunch of those sessions together and you will feel as if you're king of the world. Despite the fact that I didn't play lots of hours, January 2003 was one of the best poker months of my life, financially.
And then, the winter darkness of February came. Yuck! My face healed quite nicely, as the deck stayed away from me. I started out stuck every day, and struggled continuously to hold my game and chips together through every session, which mentally, emotionally, and physically drained me. By the 20th of the month, I was around 365 big bets below my January performance. It was one of the biggest swings of my poker life. I was the same player, playing the same limits against the same quality of opposition, but was getting hugely different results.
The cards can make a player look real good. When the cards are running your way, things have a way of compounding themselves. You play with confidence, and your opponents are more fearful of you and have their confidence shaken. Your bluffs work better, and your thought process is better. You have more confidence in your laydowns, thereby improving the quality and quantity of them. If there's a tilt factor, it will not show itself in your game, but in your opponents' games. Positive things make additional positive things happen.
The cards can also make a good player look real bad. When the cards are running against you, things likewise have a way of compounding themselves. Your confidence in your decisions is shaken, and your opponents are energized by beating you. The wearing-down effect of losing – the emotional and mental strain on your brain and body that happens when you cannot book a win – burns you out, causing your mind to fatigue and function at a lower level. Your confidence in your laydowns and decisions, which was so great a month ago, disappears, causing you to make more errors. And when you are playing against quality competition, the difference between playing well enough to break even and great enough to beat the game is a mighty fine line.
Obviously, it is better to be lucky than luckless, but in the poker world, you will over any given time period experience both realities. As a player, you need to maintain a proper perspective of dealing with both realities in order to remain stable, happy, playing your best, and, most importantly, a winner.
When things go well, don't get full of yourself and take on the world's best players at their game. It is a good time to take that confidence and take shots at higher limits and tougher levels of competition, but you shouldn't be in too much of a hurry. If you have what it takes, you will get there. However, when you are confident and at the top of your game, that is the correct time to take an additional step up.
Don't hit and run. Since you are playing at your highest performance level, put in the hours when you are at that level. That said, don't burn yourself out physically and mentally; you want to continue the streak for as long as possible. Don't assume that the streak and opportunity will be available forever. Don't go out and spend the money as fast as you can. Things can change quickly in the poker world, in terms of both luck and opportunity. When those changes occur, it is important to be prepared for them, in terms of both bankroll and spirit.
More important than dealing with good runs correctly is dealing with bad runs correctly. When you can't catch a card to save your life, different sets of problems present themselves. If you had the best of it and did things right when things were going well, money will not be one of those issues. That said, even if you are wealthy, going through a losing streak is not a good feeling. When things are not going well, I focus on doing what it takes to get my mind back into a positive state. Playing long, exhausting sessions trying to get even, and burning yourself out mentally, emotionally, and physically, is not the proper procedure. I do stay a little longer if the money is still there and the game is good, but when my resources of physical and mental energy have left me, I pack up and go home to go to bed, looking to start out fresh on a new day. Taking a break, doing something I find relaxing and enjoyable, and getting my mind as fresh and clear as possible before my next session is something I find advantageous. I manipulate myself by putting thoughts into my head that make me feel positive, even if I am deluding myself, so that I can approach my next session with confidence, which is an attribute. One disadvantage of spending your dough when things are going well is that when the landlord is knocking at your door, taking a much needed break is a difficult proposition to consider, and feeling positive and stress-free about approaching a game is a much more difficult assignment.
When in the midst of a statistically aberrant negative run, put yourself in a mindset that each hand is a new hand, and don't let what has happened in the past affect your mind and play in the hand that you are playing. Many players get a defeated attitude when running badly, and fall into a negative mindset from which they never recoup. They develop a more passive approach to the game, and miss bets, bluffs, and opportunities. They lose physical and mental energy, and it skews their thought process.
Don't externalize your predicament by blaming the dealers, the other players, or the people in your personal life. Looking for someone to blame your lack of success on is never the sign of a winner. Don't let a bad run of cards turn your character sour, or you will be a loser in life and poker. Accept the fact that the cards sometimes run bad. Have the mindset that you are tough enough mentally to stay patient, and you will persevere through the bad run.
Do internalize the situation, but don't beat yourself up. Read a good poker book or review your notes to put your best thoughts in the forefront of your mind. Don't try to get it all back in one session. Nothing is finer for the poker soul than a win. Get that win and put yourself on the right track, play lower limits and against easier competition, and get yourself feeling positive.
On Feb. 21, I started my session the same way I had all month – buried! I hung in there, and tried my best to get through these difficult circumstances. Several hours into the session, I made a flush with the A
3 to win a monster pot. Things went well from there, and I got myself even for the month in one session. Was I just lucky that day? Yes! But the laydowns, plays, and decisions I made in the sessions in which I lost allowed this good fortune to get me even for the month. Many players make bad situations worse through a series of bad decisions and play, so when they catch a rush, it does not get them out. It is important not be stuck $8,000 when you have a $5,000 rush.
Poker life has more than its fair share of high highs and low lows, and as Mom used to say, you have to take the good with the bad. Accepting those swings of fortune and appropriately dealing with them can make a poker player healthy and wealthy – or at least capable of paying bills.
Roy Cooke played winning professional poker for more than 16 years. He is a successful real estate broker/salesperson in Las Vegas – please see his ad below. If you would like to ask Roy poker-related questions, you may do so online at www.UnitedPokerForum.com.